Many assemblies within a motor vehicle comprise gaskets that are provided to improve sealing between components of the assembly. For example, the gasket may be provided in order to reduce or prevent oil leakage between the components of the assembly. Providing a gasket within the assembly increases the number of components within the vehicle and may increase the number of separate components that must be stored and assembled on the vehicle production line.
In order to improve the process of assembling an assembly for a vehicle comprising a gasket, the gasket may be coupled to a component of the vehicle assembly away from the main vehicle production line. A subassembly comprising the vehicle component and the gasket may be transported to the vehicle production line for assembly onto the vehicle.
In order to prevent the gasket from becoming separated from the vehicle component during transport, the gasket may comprise a retaining feature configured to couple the gasket to the component of the vehicle assembly.
When maintenance is performed on the assembly comprising the gasket, it is often desirable to replace the gasket. However, when the gasket comprises the retaining feature, the process of removing and replacing the gasket may be challenging. In some cases, it may be necessary to replace the component of the vehicle assembly in order to replace the gasket.